TD Club recognizing Maryland national championship

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Maryland men’s lacrosse will be presented with the prestigious Henry Ciccarone Jr. Memorial Collegiate Team of the Year Award from the Annapolis Touchdown Club. That award has been given to the best college team in the state of Maryland — men’s or women’s, Division I or III — for almost four decades.

Maryland men’s lacrosse will be presented with the prestigious Henry Ciccarone Jr. Memorial Collegiate Team of the Year Award from the Annapolis Touchdown Club. That award has been given to the best college team in the state of Maryland — men’s or women’s, Division I or III — for almost four decades. (Omar Rawlings/Getty Images)

In honor of the late Joe Gross, former sports editor of The Capital who regularly wrote a column called Weekend Wanderings.

The Touchdown Club of Annapolis has announced details of its annual Lacrosse Cookout and Awards Ceremony, which shapes up to be something special this year.

Maryland men's lacrosse will be presented with the prestigious Henry Ciccarone Jr. Memorial Collegiate Team of the Year Award from the Touchdown Club. That award has been given to the best college team in the state of Maryland — men's or women's, Division I or III — for almost four decades.

Maryland, which captured the Division I national championship over Memorial Day weekend, was an obvious choice to receive the Ciccarone Award for this year. Head coach John Tillman led the Terrapins to a 16-3 record that included regular season and tournament titles in the Big Ten Conference.

As has been the case since 2010, the Touchdown Club Lacrosse Cookout and Awards Ceremony will be held in conjunction with a Chesapeake Bayhawks home game. This summer's event is slated for next Thursday, July 20 prior to Chesapeake-Florida Launch contest at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.

It works out perfectly that all four captains of the 2017 Maryland men's lacrosse squad will be on hand that night. Attackman Colin Heacock as well as defensive midfielders Isaiah Davis-Allen and Nick Manis are members of the Bayhawks while defenseman Tim Mueller plays for the Launch. They will accept the award along with head coach John Tillman, who has compiled an impressive 96-29 record and led Maryland to five championship game appearances in seven seasons as head coach.

"Everyone associated with Maryland men's lacrosse is very proud to accept the Henry Ciccarone Jr. Collegiate Team of the Year Award. It is a tremendous honor and a fitting cap to a very memorable year," said Tillman, a longtime assistant at the Naval Academy.

Supporters of Maryland lacrosse had to wait more than four decades for the proud program to snap an unbelievable drought. The Terrapins last captured the NCAA Division I title in 1975 while under the direction of legendary head coach Clayton "Buddy" Beardmore.

Beardmore died in January, 2016 at the age of 76 while all the players from 1975, which includes a large contingent of Anne Arundel County residents, are now in their mid-60s.

Touchdown Club of Annapolis organizers are making a nice gesture by specially inviting members of the 1975 team to join in next week's celebration of the 2017 national championship club.

The Chesapeake Bayhawks are piggybacking on the Touchdown Club event by declaring July 20 a Maryland Men's Lacrosse Night. The Bayhawks will honor the Terps during a halftime tribute with Coach Tillman and players being recognized during an on-field ceremony.

"The Bayhawks are proud to recognize the 2017 Maryland men's lacrosse team for its awesome accomplishment of capturing the Division I national championship," Bayhawks president Mark Burdett said in a press release issued by the Major League Lacrosse franchise.

Burdett is a former Maryland lacrosse player, a four-year letterman from 1977-1980 under Beardmore. The Severn School graduate, like all products of the program, was thrilled to see the 42-year drought come to an end. Maryland had lost in the national championship game nine times and in the semifinals another 10 times since last winning in 1975.

"For all of us old Terps, this has been a long time coming and we are so thankful to Coach Tillman and all the members of this year's team for getting Maryland back to the mountaintop," Burdett said.

Scott Schuetter, president of the Touchdown Club of Annapolis, said the Maryland national championship celebration is not limited to the players and families of the 2017 and 1975 teams. All former Maryland men's lacrosse players along with alumni and fans are invited to join the fun at the Lacrosse Cookout and Awards Ceremony, which begins at 5:30 p.m. at a pavilion located on the concourse in the south end zone.

Tickets for the event, which will be sold at the gate, cost $20 and include the cookout and Bayhawks-Launch game. Mission BBQ is catering the cookout and will have all its favorite meats and sides. Two other locally-owned businesses are lending support as Papa John's is providing pizza while Katcef Brothers is donating beer.

While Maryland men's lacrosse is the headliner, the Touchdown Club Lacrosse Cookout and Awards Ceremony includes several other traditional presentations. Severna Park swept the High School Team of the Year honors.

Head coach David Earl led the Severna Park boys to an unblemished 20-0 record and the Class 4A-3A state championship. The Falcons have a 37-game winning streak and two straight state titles.

Head coach Kaitlyn Hines directed the Severna Park girls to a 17-3 record that featured the Anne Arundel County Championship and a runner-up finish in the Class 4A-3A state tournament. The Falcons had a 15-game winning streak snapped when they were beaten by Bel Air, 10-9, in the championship game.

Tim Lang will be posthumously presented with the Golden Whistle Award for officiating excellence. The longtime Arnold resident succumbed on April 5 to complications of amyloidosis disease, a rare condition in which abnormal proteins accumulate in organs such as the heart or kidneys.

Lang, who was 67 when he passed, began refereeing girls' lacrosse games in Anne Arundel County high school games in 1984 and quickly became one of the best in the business. He graduated to the collegiate level in the early 1990s and was soon working the top games in Division I.

Lang always received high grades for his officiating performance and was chosen to work the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals on numerous occasions. He also did the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament and America East Tournament among others.

Bonnye Lang, herself a top-flight official and long-time assigner for Anne Arundel County high school and recreation girls' lacrosse, will accept the award on behalf of her late husband. Alison and Nicole Lang will also be on hand to honor their father, who was a highly-respected figure within the world of women's lacrosse officiating and routinely taught at national and district clinics.

Hero's Lacrosse has been the long-time sponsor of the Lacrosse Cookout and Awards Ceremony. President Chip Bullen will present the Hero's Man of the Year Award to Bruce Beardmore, who has overseen the organization's website and social media for several years.

Beardmore has been playing in the Hero's Lacrosse Summer League for 35 years, dating back to his days at St. Mary's High. He coached Severn River Lacrosse Club to the Master's championship last season and also led a Crofton team to the Middle School title a few years ago.

TEAM USA UPDATE: Anne Arundel County products Michael Evans and Brian Phipps are among the 49 players named to the United States training team in preparation for the 2018 Federation of International Lacrosse World Championships.

Evans, a Davidsonville native, was a member of the 2014 U.S. squad, which was upset by Canada in the championship game in Denver. The South River High and Johns Hopkins University graduate is in his ninth year of Major League Lacrosse – all with the Chesapeake Bayhawks. The 2009 Schmeisser Award winner as the best defenseman in Division I is a perennial All-Star in MLL.

Phipps, an Annapolis native, is trying to make Team USA for the first time in his career. The former Severn School and University of Maryland standout has played seven seasons of Major League Lacrosse – four with the Ohio Machine and three with the Chesapeake Bayhawks. The head coach at Archbishop Spalding joined Evans in representing the Bayhawks at the MLL All-Star Game last weekend.

Other Chesapeake Bayhawks chosen to the U.S. Men's National Training Team are midfielders Matt Abbott, Jake Froccaro and Myles Jones, attackman Matt Danowski and defenseman Jesse Bernhardt.

Those 49 players will return to US Lacrosse headquarters in Sparks, Maryland over Labor Day Wekend for a training camp. The Team USA Fall Classic will be held Oct. 6-9 while the Team USA Spring Premiere is slated for early January in Florida.

Shortly thereafter, US Lacrosse will announce the final United States roster that will compete in the FIL Men's World Championship, being held in Netanya, Israel from July 12-21, 2108.

CROSSE OVER EVENT: A fundraiser to support the Anne Arundel County Crosse Over program will be held Thursday, July 13 (4-9 p.m.) at O'Loughlin's in Arnold. This event serves as a sendoff for the Anne Arundel County Under-15 squad that will travel to England for the annual exchange of culture and lacrosse.

Mention to O'Loughlin's staff that you are there to support Anne Arundel Crosse Over and the restaurant will donate 15 percent of your check to the program.